Protein Powder I Use...
Wait...What? Protein, Paula... have I stumbled upon the wrong Paula's blog post?
I get questions from clients, quite frequently, on what I think is the best protein powder to use.
Stepping back a few years... protein powders come in and out of fashion like clothing styles. I know this cyclic pattern, I have plaid shirts purchased when I was 20 years old and 28 years later (yes, I still have those plaid shirts), I am right back in the swing of fashion!
Enter protein powders from the late 70's and 80's. With a processing makeover (claiming to preserve the vital nutrients of raw milk and colostrum... maybe, but I have a hard time believing that you can remove the liquid whey from the whole milk and then process it into powdered form and still retain all the vital nutrients...really?) and a new label, perhaps some updated, high tech marketing hype and voila... a new fad ready to sell to the newest generation.
My favorite protein powder is this: zero, zip, nada, zilch, none of them! In my eyes, they are very processed, refined, manufactured products... not food. When food is in its whole state, it is a nourishing, cell building gift to your body. Processed products by any name: rice protein powder, soy protein powder, whey protein powder, hemp protein powder (get the idea here?), well... not so nourishing.
My thoughts, and I know I go against the grain, take it for what it is worth.
Now if you are making your own cheese and keeping the whey liquid to use, great. Much different than the powdered whey stuff sold as health food. Again, this is my healing thoughts.
If you think you need more protein, for whatever your reason, use real foods - whole foods. Are you using protein powders in a smoothie to up your daily protein? Add a raw egg or two from healthy chickens, raised by farmers you know, and living on farms that are clean and natural. I would never use a commercially raised egg in raw form, organic or not. Add raw nuts and seeds, they are loaded with protein and healthy fat to boot. Tolerate dairy? Use real milk from real cows / goats / sheep / yaks, raised eating their natural diets and keep the milk raw and unprocessed. (I am not a big fan of the packaged milk replacements: rice, soy, almond milk, etc. Again, it is processed, made in a factory. Make your almond milk at home, it is easy and you control the ingredients and process. Email me for a recipe.) Add 1/4 to 1/3 cup of beans to the smoothie, if you tolerate them. I recommend light tasting and lighter colored beans for this purpose.
All of these recommendations, for smoothies, are foods that can be eaten just as food. I am not a big fan of tossing a bunch of yummy foods in a blender and pureeing into a liquid meal. I like to chew food in a real meal form. So, with that said, eat any of the above foods to increase your protein intake. Take soft boiled eggs (from healthy, local chickens), 3 minutes, for on the go meals. Cheese and yogurt from well raised animals. Eat lentils and split peas in all sorts of yummy dishes: soups, stews, Indian dahl... the sky is the limit.
My point is that there are many plant and animal whole foods that can be added to your diet without resorting to powdered protein products. Nature did not make them, a factory did.
My focal point for making healthy food choices: did nature make it or was it concocted in a factory?
I will confess, I have had running dialogues with various naturopathic healers who recommend protein powders. One healer, in particular, I have their whole food protocol for healing disease that clearly states to eat natural foods, avoid packaged foods. Then the protocol recommends a protein powder and protein snack bar made by a specific company. What?! Really?! When I read this my first thought was: "How can this "healer" recommend a 100% whole food diet that eliminates packaged foods, and then turn around and recommend a factory made protein product or two, all in the same health education document? How is this not sending a very confusing message to those seeking healing?"
As I always say, take the information in and create your own healing truths.
Stay tuned for fat... Mmmm, Mmmm Fat, coming soon in a newsletter blog post near you!